https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Fri, 03 Apr 2026 17:50:25 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1133121 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 21:04:46 +0000 Mo 1133121@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Ha!!! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1133075 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 20:16:23 +0000 Janet 1133075@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I'm so obsessed with these luxe finds, I'm curating my collection! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132827 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 16:39:25 +0000 catgirl 1132827@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Like luxe and obsessed, you won't be able to stop seeing it now! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132815 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 16:30:47 +0000 Mo 1132815@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I just saw on Revolve's resort collection page - Inspired by you, curated by us. &nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132813 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 16:29:23 +0000 Lisa 1132813@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I really like Liz's black boot example.&nbsp; I think each person has a tipping point where items are no longer fun to own and when it is not fun to own it's time to let it go.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132431 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 05:25:54 +0000 Missey 1132431@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I need to meet this Anna Del Russo...I wonder if she likes Frye boots? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132411 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 05:03:52 +0000 Caro in Oz 1132411@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Yes Gaylene, I love that game&nbsp;&nbsp;:)</p> <p>I have a way of sorting this out - I'll call Christies &amp; see if they want to sell&nbsp;my (insert whatever here)&nbsp;collection if they do&nbsp;I'm a collector if it's no&nbsp;then it's into therapy for my hoarding problem :)</p> <p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2012/jun/26/daphne-guinness-auction-isabella-blow">http://www.theguardian.com/fas.....bella-blow</a></p> <p> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132260 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 02:51:29 +0000 Gaylene 1132260@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Reminds me of the semantic game we used to play:</p> <p>She is a hoarder but I am a collector<br /> You need to get rid of your old junk; I need to curate my possessions. </p> <p>But as someone who has also has had to help my mother sort out half a century's worth of possessions, I began to realize using the term "collection" to describe a pile of items pushed in dark corner probably is stretching the term a bit far. It made me contemplate the final fate of my "collections" once I was no longer able to clutch them, whispering "my precious". </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132254 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 02:48:45 +0000 annagybe 1132254@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I can only think of Anna Del Russo. Supposedly she has an entire separate apartment for her collection of clothes. Also I read once she chose not to get to get married because she would have to curtail her collection. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating/page/2#post-1132247 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 02:46:50 +0000 Jaime 1132247@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>The term curating as used in fashion blogs strikes me as both overused and pretentious. But collecting, nothing wrong with that! (Until there is.) </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132176 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 01:55:12 +0000 Liz 1132176@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I think the problem with giving in to the joy of the black boot is that at some point the joy will diminish and start to turn into something else (unless you really do decide just to collect them like other people collect stamps). It's that old law of diminishing returns.&nbsp;I don't know where the tipping point is,&nbsp;but it's somewhere. Maybe&nbsp;. . .<br />6 black boots = joy<br />16 black boots = joyful adundance<br />26 black boots = very fun luxury<br />46 black boots = saturation<br />86 black boots = wha...?!<br />160 black boots = um,&nbsp;counseling </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132156 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 01:39:57 +0000 rae 1132156@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I don't have the brian power to read the whole thread, but I do think it's all in your awareness and self-discipline. If you are "curating" everything from boots to tees to bracelets to hummels, you are deluding yourself. If you just plain have a deep love of 1-2 things, there is nothing wrong with collecting.&nbsp;</p> <p>Angie herself has said she has no limit on handbags, right? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132147 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 01:34:26 +0000 Trishalee 1132147@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This makes me laugh. My husband always asks me " are you going to wear that or worship it?" It seems I may collect things as well. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132136 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 01:22:39 +0000 catgirl 1132136@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Okay the use of the word that way makes me a little nauseated. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132132 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 01:15:11 +0000 cciele 1132132@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Funny, about the word "curate" and common usage. Apparently it's being abused in the corporate world. I was just reading this article from the Financial Times, which has this to say about the worst (or best?) examples of corporate guff/jargon:<br /><span>&nbsp;<a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8b333e00-73e1-11e3-beeb-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz2plW5bOh2">http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8b33.....z2plW5bOh2</a></p> <p></span>"He also managed to use the word “wheelhouse”, which was on the longlist for the “Guff word of 2013”. Other candidates included “sweetspot” and “experience”, both narrowly beaten by “curate” – referring not to a man in a dog collar, nor to something that happens in art galleries, but to the activity that every company, no matter how basic, claims to be doing. A vendor of T-shirts “curates iconic street culture”. But when even a cheese sold by a US delicatessen claims every yellow slab has been curated before it reaches your mouth, the prize is in the bag." </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132105 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 00:47:30 +0000 deb 1132105@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have a collection of 60's Blenko decanters that total around 15. That is as far as my collecting goes. Unless you want to count the library/music room. But aren't books necessary for education? Not&nbsp;hoarding at all. With clothing, though, I can see where special items saved over time because they have some value and a place to live nicely, a collection. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132096 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 00:42:26 +0000 Karie 1132096@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I like what Mo said about bringing joy or stress. And Anna, your shoes are as gorgeous as art, so I'll bet they look lovely in the living room. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1132087 Wed, 08 Jan 2014 00:35:33 +0000 DonnaF 1132087@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Clothing, including accessories, are meant to be worn and not looked at.&nbsp; That being said, I need to get rid of some of my scarves that I don't really wear.&nbsp; Same goes for belts.&nbsp; Not sure about earrings since I don't wear them much now that my hair is longer, but I am considering going back to shorter hair.</p> <p>My mom is a hoarder and a control freak so she goes ballistic whenever I try to get rid of anything of hers.&nbsp; But really, the equivalent of seven closets full of clothes for an 89 year old who doesn't do much any more?&nbsp; Actually, I kind of snuck some stuff out because she has so much she will never miss it.&nbsp; I removed all heels because she is very unsteady on her feet, and even I don't wear boots with 3" heels!&nbsp; She actually wants me to be stuck with an enormous mess after she dies instead of eliminating the stuff now, and has never bothered to get rid of anything because she has so many closets and would just buy one more hanging rack or whatever.&nbsp; :(&nbsp; At least at her age, she isn't overly concerned about what is dated so I guess she can continue to wear what she has since shopping tires her out.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131825 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 20:44:00 +0000 rachylou 1131825@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I just wanted to say that my cousin gave me this book one year, rather pointedly: </p> <p><i><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/collecting-werner-muensterberger/1112006954?ean=9780156002530" rel="nofollow">Collecting: An Unruly Passion: Psychological Perspectives</a></i></p> <p>But I mean, the girl is an art historian. Fine one to talk! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131816 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 20:35:05 +0000 Ingunn 1131816@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Interesting question, and great answers! I think curating should be reserved for art galleries. Honestly, it is adding too much value to most kind of clothes to "curate" them. But I love me&nbsp;a well edited closet. I also think collecting certain pieces is perfectly fine, but like Mo, I think the stress of owning more than I possibly can wear takes the joy out of it. I also don't like to toss away pretty new and usable pieces regularly, so I have to curb my shopping to avoid that.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131809 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 20:25:53 +0000 annagybe 1131809@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Well, I have a shoecase in my living room. But by setting that up, I actually wear my shoes more because I can see them. Or at least the ones in there. I have overflow, *guilty look*. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131793 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 20:11:30 +0000 Isabel 1131793@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Very interesting topic ! &nbsp;I think of "curating" just like art. &nbsp;I think that women who do this have very "special" pieces that they catalog and hang onto for some very specific reason.</p> <p>I want to be able to wear all of my clothes out. Women who curate, don't.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131749 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 19:20:07 +0000 catgirl 1131749@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Laura, I agree. I always thought of curating as carefully selecting and rotating items (like an art collection at a museum) and find it a bit OTT as a term applied to one's closet. Which is what I was getting at - is it a way to cover up a mild disorder? I am by no means a hoarder, but I cannot resist a black boot. Is it okay to just give in to that joy? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131743 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 19:16:49 +0000 ironkurtin 1131743@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Well... I go out of my way to buy vintage Helmut Lang pieces in good condition.&nbsp; Even though I can't really wear them where I am now, I know I *will* wear them, and I will love wearing them when I do.&nbsp; The same for my cashmere sweaters.&nbsp; I get very limited use out of them in Austin, but I know quality and I know myself, and if the price is right I feel justified in springing for it.&nbsp; I keep these items stored with lavender sachets for the day when I can sport them.</p> <p>I am incredibly good about shedding what I don't wear, though. I hate having things that don't fit right or I don't use, and it might take a beat, but I purge as often as I can.&nbsp; My friends all joke that they are Dressed in Dana! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131740 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 19:09:26 +0000 Anonymous 1131740@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I am stressed reading this conversation, as I know I have things in my closet I don't wear and don't look nice on me. We are moving to a smaller house in the summer and I have to take a really good look at everything, closets, cosmetics, kitchen cupboards...the thought is very stressful so I know I need to cull,,,bah</p> <p>I need to address why I keep them, because I have gotten rid of things in the past only to re-shop and add them again (and this applies to all areas metioned above: clothes, cosmetics, food, dishes, I hate to 'run-out' of anything) </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131738 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 19:08:40 +0000 Laura (rhubarbgirl) 1131738@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>This kind of thing comes up a lot among people who sew. Most have a fabric stash and sometimes a fabric will sit for years before you get the time to use it or hit upon the perfect project. Some say that they are more fabric collectors than they are seamstresses. </p> <p>It's a little different than clothes because clothes should be immediately, or at least shortly, usable when you buy them. I can imagine keeping a few greatest hits kinds of outfits, but preferably somewhere else than my regular closet - at that point they are souvenirs or collectibles, not clothes for wearing.</p> <p>This whole labeling it curation thing makes me roll my eyes a little, to be honest - if I say that I curate my book collection does that make it ok that I've got so many? Why can't people just say "hey, I like to shop and own clothes, it's one of my hobbies, so I've got a lot of them"? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131729 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:53:25 +0000 unfrumped 1131729@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Really like K. period's " the old thing may be stealing wearing opportunities..."<br />That is like ? Mo's comment on, if I get this new thing, what current (old) thing is it replacing?<br />Really, what's in my imaginary lifestyle is not just lifestyle, but overall "wear opportunities". I don't have as many as I sometimes imagine I do. <br />So&nbsp; a goal for 2014 is to not let the wrong old things or the wrong new things steal "wear opportunities" from the good things.</p> <p>Ooh, I need to put that in the 2014 resolution page! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131707 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:36:17 +0000 K. Period. 1131707@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My family has a tendency to hoard things. &nbsp;I am the best at getting rid of things. &nbsp;I think Mo nailed it: does it bring you joy or bring you stress? If you have anxiety about it, then it is a good reason to evaluate why you are collecting and keeping the things you are. &nbsp;My mom has tons of old clothes that are unlikely to be back in style that she is hoarding for future wear. She also has a very small house. I'm working with her to help her get rid of some of those things. &nbsp;So you can imagine, this idea has been on my mind a lot the past few years. &nbsp;</p> <p>I went through a major closet purge this last spring. &nbsp;I lost weight and was ready to get rid of things that weren't fitting me anymore and things that I had saved (for when I lost that 5, 10, 15 etc. lbs.). &nbsp;I was merciless. &nbsp;It was painful. And at the end, I felt fantastically free. &nbsp;What I'm learning from getting rid of things (and I'm still learning it, believe me) is that things I keep after my love for them fades&nbsp;put a burden on me. I feel the obligation to wear them. &nbsp;While that is helpful sometimes (the moment you remember you have just the right topper in your closet already), it is not most times (the day after day that you drag a joyless item out and wear it instead of the newer thing that you love). &nbsp;I also found that it kept me from really getting the wear that I wanted out of new things that I loved. &nbsp;The old things were stealing my wearing opportunities from my new things. &nbsp;</p> <p>So the only things that I think it is worthwhile to keep are those that make you&nbsp;happy. &nbsp;When they cease making you happy, you should let them find a better home. &nbsp;If you have a ton of boots and they all make you happy and you wear them (or are willing to save them for 20 years until they become personal vintage), then you are good, even if you have a collection. &nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131705 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:31:44 +0000 Janet 1131705@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>April, I soooooo get this. My sister and I had to clean out my mother's closets (yes, plural) after she passed away. There were 100 pairs of pants just in ONE closet. It was exhausting and overwhelming. I know mom never intended to leave something like that for us to deal with, but compulsive behaviors often have that result. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/hoarding-vs-curating#post-1131694 Tue, 07 Jan 2014 18:16:43 +0000 April 1131694@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Last year, I helped my mother (hoarding tendencies) go through every closet in her house. &nbsp;Trust me, there is no virtue in keeping mountains of anything. &nbsp;Somewhere down the road, it always creates a nightmare that someone has to cope with. &nbsp; </p>